1. Field of the Invention
Exemplary embodiments of the present invention relate to portable terminals, and more particularly, to a method for reducing power consumption by controlling driving of a motion recognition program, and a portable terminal using the same.
2. Discussion of the Background
In recent years, as portable terminals have become widely used, they have also become important tools in modern society. With the increase in popularity of portable terminals, user interface (UI) techniques regarding portable terminal control methods have been developed.
Conventional UI is performed through a keypad of a portable terminal. UI techniques using a touch sensor or a haptic sensor have recently been developed. UI techniques using a motion sensor recognizing the motion of users have also been developed. When a user performs an action with a portable terminal having a motion sensor, the portable terminal recognizes the user's action and performs a function corresponding thereto.
In general, when a portable terminal executes a motion recognition-based application, a motion sensor and a motion recognition program are operated and, accordingly, a processor for controlling applications within the portable terminal also operates at a speed suitable for driving the motion sensor and the motion recognition program. When the motion sensor detects a motion input, the processor controlling the application performs a function corresponding to the motion according to the motion recognition program.
If an application continuously detects user motions, it is preferable that the motion sensor and the motion recognition program are continuously driven in order to recognize the user motion in real time. However, if an application detects user motion, but not continuously, driving the motion sensor and the motion recognition program continuously would cause power to be unnecessarily consumed. For example, the user inputs a motion to execute a call function and then maintains the call state for a long period of time, or the user inputs a motion to execute an MP3 player or a radio set and simply listens to music without inputting any further motion for a long period of time. If the motion sensor and the motion recognition program are kept active while the user maintains call communication or listens to music, the processor controlling the is application for driving them may be driven at a high speed, consuming power, which causes battery life span to be shortened.
In order to operate the portable terminal for a long period of time, a battery capacity may be large. However, the restriction in the size of the portable terminal leads to restriction in the battery capacity. Thus, it is beneficial to reduce power consumption of the battery in order to increase usage time of the portable terminal, rather than increasing the battery capacity.